If you could live and work anywhere, where would you choose, and why?

I have read a few posts here and it sounds like some people describe Toronto/Canada, London/ the UK, and NYC and LA to be less ideal because of either affordability, competitiveness in finding jobs, or other characteristics 
 

I am unfamiliar with most of the above cities as I am from South Asia, but curious to hear: if you could choose to live and work anywhere, where would you like to be, and why? 

77 Comments
 
Funniest

Lol to a fellow south asian - if you read this forum too much, your conclusions from the commenters would be something like:

The least ideal cities in the world to live in include: NYC, London, Toronto, LA and SF

Also the least optimal jobs out of college would include: IB, PE, HF

The worst schools are: Harvard, Wharton, LSE, Oxford, Cambridge

Ambition is bad

High earners are unhappy

Degrees from good schools are overrated

If you had a good upbringing you're probably lazy and not intelligent

 

Sevilla is incredible. Can get a little hot, but I suppose it depends on your preferences. Ibiza is cool, too (whether you like partying or not, there’s something for everyone there). 

 
aro3s

Anyone know of any good areas in Europe that are nice? Spain or Croatia?

Valencia Spain is nice - I lived there for 6 months.

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

Agreed, but it’s such a small town that you’d want to go over already knowing someone. I’d imagine it’d be hard meeting lots of new ppl if you just show up cold turkey w plans to live there a long time. 

 
Most Helpful

Italy, Japan or South Korea.  The US military has bases in these countries so I’d live near one of them so you get a taste of home while living abroad. 
 

Italy would be near Naples (I’d prefer to live in Pompeii or closer to Sorrento).  Second choice would be near Pisa in Tuscany area.  
 

Japan would be Tokyo closer to Camp Zama, or in Tokyo is fine, it’s so cosmopolitan.  Okinawa might be cool, but I might as well move back home to Hawaii.  

South Korea would have been in Seoul near Yongsan (where I used to live for a few years as a kid because my dad worked on base) say like Namsan/Itaewon, but since Yongsan closed maybe Pusan or Daegu.  
 

I would do this now mainly to give my kids international experience, but to still be socially American.  The likelihood of me moving abroad is very low unfortunately (what would I do there?)  But it’s a fun thought, and I love those countries.

Have compassion as well as ambition and you’ll go far in life. I am interested in digital immortality. Check out my blog at digitalimmortality.com
 
orangomango

Anyone familiar with the Tampa area?

If you could live anywhere in the world you would pick...Tampa? 

Commercial Real Estate Developer
 
CRE
orangomango

Anyone familiar with the Tampa area?

If you could live anywhere in the world you would pick...Tampa? 

lololol 

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 
CRE
orangomango

Anyone familiar with the Tampa area?

If you could live anywhere in the world you would pick...Tampa? 

LOL no - was asking if anyone is familiar with Tampa. I saw a show called selling tampa on netflix so that town came to mind

 

The main thing I don't like about Tampa is the September weather.  I have a pool, which helps considerably.  That said, I moved there from the DC area back in 2010 and I'd rather have the heat then the snow, ice, and traffic.

Also roads are congested from traffic, but it’s not even close to the traffic in DC.

The beaches are second to none.  I rarely go to Disney and such, but it's so convenient when I do and let's face it, like it or not, Disney is probably one of the best amusement parks.  People down here tend to be nicer (imo) than those in the big cities.  I actually attribute this to the fact that the vast majority of people here are from other states, and when they move here, they have to kind of be a little nicer to meet people (idk, maybe I'm wrong here).  Of all of my neighbors, only two or three are native Floridians.  The night-life in St. Pete (a stones throw away) is also fantastic.  Although I live in Tampa, I prefer St. Pete for the nightlife.  The Airport here is also fantastic; it's super convenient, easy in & out, and since they've upgraded it, there are a lot more direct international flights available. Housing prices are considerably lower compared to most larger northern cities.

 

Can I give London better weather or Italy a better economy

In the states though, the answer is Southern California and I'll be making that happen here in less than a month. 

Commercial Real Estate Developer
 
Southern_cre

Damn, leaving the southeast? What's driving the decision?

Time for new adventures 

Commercial Real Estate Developer
 

My current plan:

- Stay in Southeast for a few years

- Los Angeles next for school and to find a wife

- Back to NYC after that 

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

JonnyDrama

What school and what would you be studying?

A late MBA. It has been a long journey for me in considering schools. But, the best fit for me in the T15 category seems to be USC Marshall. I previously applied for an EMBA at a top school a year and a half ago and got the test waiver for the GMAT and although they said I was a very strong applicant and a diversity applicant (not my skin color, my diverse background), I wasn’t the right fit for the program.

I also have a gap on my resume on working in finance and therefore don’t have proper recommendations. For my last recommendation letter, my sister wrote it and although it was glowing, it just wasn’t the right way to apply as I even had to get that letter approved for review. USC Marshall does not accept letters of recommendation. So that solves that.

USC Marshall also has a high test score average. A couple of years ago it was a 732 GMAT average:

https://poetsandquants.com/2022/10/05/wow-usc-marshalls-new-class-repor…

"To put Marshall’s GMAT score in perspective, last year 732 would have placed the school second among all U.S. B-schools, tied with Chicago Booth School of Business and trailing only Stanford Graduate School of Business. And this year, Marshall’s astronomical score is ahead of such peers as Virginia Darden School of Business (720)Chicago Booth (729)Yale School of Management (723)Michigan Ross School of Business (720)Duke Fuqua School of Business (718), and UCLA Anderson School of Management (711) — and just behind NYU Stern School of Business and the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, both of which reported averages of 733."

This means USC Marshall adcoms value high test scores. I can use this to my advantage. I am highly intelligent and although I don’t test well, I’m confident I can ace the GMAT/GRE. 

Also, I can only attend school in a FT program after my parents pass and I’m going to need to be close to family (siblings) to really deal with life and both my sisters live in CA.

The FT MBA program is really the best option for me. The EMBA program wouldn’t have been as good for putting me back in the recruiting pipeline.

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 

Caribbean seems mostly like islands for short vacations, fairly undeveloped infrastructure outside of the big resorts, mostly driven by seemingly tourism or some form of farming 

 

Dubai / UAE is a great place to...

...work, as expat salaries will be higher than home. This is especially true for Europeans in good white collar jobs, as they tend to have lower salaries than Americans and higher taxes. It's also true for anyone from a dysfunctional or poor country who is not wealthy enough to live well at home.

...visit, if you live within a reasonable flight radius and have a weak passport, as it's much easier to get a UAE tourist visa than it is to get an EU tourist visa.

For Americans who are just starting their careers, as most on this site are, the value prop is weaker unless you have a great job opp.

 

I think it would be cool to just spend a month or two in every major city. That way you could experience a bunch of different ways of life

 

I lived in Sydney for five years. I really enjoyed how much of it was there to explore, be it cafes/restaurants/pubs, but then also national parks and beaches. You really don't run out of things to do and there's always at least something open at all hours (or at least there was when I was there!). I know you can't really generalise people from an area but let me try; I have lots of friends from there of all types, but the key similarity between a lot of them was they were very motivated to try and make something of themselves and create things and hustle as oppose to the smaller town mentality of just settling down. Not that there's a right or wrong way for either of those, just an observation - very fast paced, busy, crowded, but at the benefit of there being lots of people to meet and things to experience. Some places that were great to live in included Newtown (great food and culture)/Alexandria (lots of cool lil cafes around, public transport not quite as good)/Randwick (an easy walk to Coogee and shops and transport pretty accessible)/Cammeray (older demographic and much quieter, but beautiful streets and nature). You can't really go too wrong with the surrounding city suburbs (although somewhat expensive), but if you decide to trek out further to save money I would suggest doing some research on which areas are better or more optimal 

 

Assumenda quia cum labore tenetur. Architecto similique qui voluptatem provident nostrum facere consequatur. Dolor iusto dolore dolores rem. Dolores non harum quo reprehenderit tempora et voluptatem voluptatem. Enim consequatur molestiae necessitatibus libero. Tenetur est et velit at non temporibus.

Culpa nobis aut earum dolorem. Possimus sint dignissimos nesciunt dolores hic molestiae qui. Impedit quo dolor vel aliquam sint aut. Quidem molestias praesentium rerum. Nam atque incidunt et quasi enim suscipit distinctio facere.

Dolorum voluptate accusantium corrupti ea. Soluta ipsa quo velit eum. Laborum commodi autem quis non molestias. Sint earum voluptas et. Consequatur ut sit praesentium blanditiis voluptas debitis. Aut et ut quo. Cumque labore et quis.

 

Corporis sed omnis recusandae minus. Et ut ex doloribus quas eum. Necessitatibus tempore voluptatibus eveniet. Sed autem dolor optio explicabo perferendis.

Veniam quo deleniti non quia cumque. Labore magni aut est quibusdam. Qui itaque ut nam laudantium natus est.

Saepe nam et vitae quisquam. Tenetur excepturi exercitationem molestiae saepe architecto distinctio.

Ullam velit est rem voluptatum beatae eos fuga et. Veritatis dolor et necessitatibus. Enim magnam eos in ut explicabo excepturi est. Ut modi tenetur expedita saepe ipsam.

 

Quibusdam fugiat fugit dolorum aut. Sint vitae quia est rerum ratione quas ut itaque. Non voluptatem dolorum voluptatem eos modi. Et veritatis ea id aut et.

In quibusdam dolor veniam porro deserunt quisquam autem. Ea sequi rerum impedit voluptatem numquam ea. Dolore eos ut ut porro unde placeat ut ad.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan No 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”